by Lew Wallace
CHAPTER V
THE PRINCESS IRENE IN TOWN
An oblong room divided in the middle crosswise by two fluted pillars ofpink-stained marble, light, delicately capped, and verygraceful--between the pillars a segmental arch--between the walls andthe pillars square ties;--the wall above the pillars elaboratelyscrolled;--three curtains of woollen stuff uniformly Tyrian dyedfilling the open places--the central curtain drawn to the pillars, andheld there by silken ropes richly tasselled--the side curtainsdropped;--a skylight for each division of the room, and under eachskylight an ample brazier dispensing a comfortable degree ofwarmth;--floor laid in pink and saffron tiles;--chairs with and withoutarms, some upholstered, all quaintly carved--to each chair a rugharmoniously colored;--massive tables of carven wood, the tops ofburnished copper inlaid with blocks of jasper, mostly red andyellow--on the tables murrhine pitchers vase-shaped, with crystaldrinking goblets about them;--the skylights conical and of clearglass;--the walls panelled, a picture in every panel, and the raisedmargins and the whole space outside done in arabesque of studiedinvolution;--doors opposite each other and bare;--such was thereception-room in the town-house of the Princess Irene arranged for thewinter.
On an armless chair in one of the divisions of the beautiful room, thePrincess sat, slightly bending over a piece of embroidery stretchedupon a frame. What with the accessories about her--the chair, a smalltable at her right covered with the bright materials in use, theslanted frame, and a flexible lion's skin under her feet--she was apicture once seen never forgotten. The wonderful setting of the headand neck upon the Phidian shoulders was admirably complemented by thelong arms, bare, round, and of the whiteness of an almond kernelfreshly broken, the hands, blue-veined and dimpled, and the fingers,tapering, pliant, nimble, rapid, each seemingly possessed of a separateintelligence.
To the left of the Princess, a little removed, Lael half reclinedagainst a heap of cushions, pale, languid, and not wholly recoveredfrom the effects of the abduction by Demedes, the terrible doom whichhad overtaken her father, and the disappearance of the Prince of India,the latter unaccountable except upon the hypothesis of death in thegreat fire. The dying prayer of the son of Jahdai had not failed withthe Princess Irene. Receiving the unfortunate girl from Sergius the dayafter the rescue from the cistern, she accepted the guardianship, andfrom that hour watched and tended her with maternal solicitude.
The other division of the room was occupied by attendants. They werevisible through the opening left by the drawn curtain; yet it is not tobe supposed they were under surveillance; on the contrary, theirpresence in the house was purely voluntary. They read, sang, acceptedtasks in embroidery from their mistress, accompanied her abroad, lovedher--in a word, their service was in every respect compatible with highrank, and in return they derived a certain education from her. For byuniversal acknowledgment she was queen and arbiter in the social worldof Byzantium; in manner the mirror, in taste and fashion its very form.Indeed, she was the subject of but one objection--her persistentprotest against the encumbrance of a veil.
With all her grave meditation, she never lectured her attendants,knowing probably that sermons in example are more impressive thansermons in words. In illustration of the freedom they enjoyed in herpresence and hearing, one of them, behind the curtain, touched astringed instrument--a cithern--and followed the prelude with a song ofAnacreontic vein.
THE GOLDEN NOON.
If my life were but a day-- One morn, one night, With a golden noon for play, And I, of right, Could say what I would do With it--what would I do?
Penance to me--e'en the stake, And late or soon!-- Yet would Love remain to make That golden noon Delightful--I would do-- Ah, Love, what would I do?
And when the singer ceased there was a merry round of applause.
The ripple thus awakened had scarcely subsided, when the ancientLysander opened one of the doors, and, after ringing the tiled floorwith the butt of his javelin, and bowing statelywise, announcedSergius. Taking a nod from the Princess, he withdrew to give thevisitor place.
Sergius went first to Irene, and silently kissed her hand; then,leaving her to resume work, he drew a chair to Lael's side.
Under his respectful manner there was an ease which only an assuranceof welcome could have brought him. This is not to be taken in the senseof familiarity; if he ever indulged that vulgarism--something quite outof character with him--it was not in his intercourse with the Princess.She did not require formality; she simply received courtesy fromeverybody, even the Emperor, as a natural tribute. At the same time,Sergius was nearer in her regard than any other person, for specialreasons.
We have seen the sympathetic understanding between the two in thematter of religion. We have seen, also, why she viewed him as aprotege. Never had one presented himself to her so gentle andunconventional never one knowing so little of the world. With life allbefore him, with its ways to learn, she saw he required an adviserthrough a period of tutelage, and assumed the relation partly through asense of duty, partly from reverent recollection of Father Hilarion.These were arguments sound in themselves; but two others had recentlyoffered.
In the first place she was aware of the love which had arisen betweenthe monk and Lael. She had not striven to spy it out. Like children,they had affected no disguise of their feeling; and while disallowingthe passion a place in her own breast, she did not deprecate or seek tosmother it in others. Far from that, in these, her wards, so to speak,it was with her an affair of permissive interest. They were so lovable,it seemed an order of nature they should love each other.
Next, the world was dealing harshly with Sergius; and though he strovemanfully to hide the fact, she saw he was suffering. He deserved well,she thought, for his rescue of Lael, and for the opportunity given theEmperor to break up the impiety founded by Demedes. Unhappily heropinion was not subscribed in certain quarters. The powerfulBrotherhood of the St. James' amongst others was in an extreme state ofexasperation with him. They insisted he could have achieved the rescuewithout the death of the Greek. They went so far as to accuse him of adouble murder--of the son first, then of the father. A terribleindictment! And they were bold and open-mouthed. Out of respect for theEmperor, who was equally outspoken in commendation of Sergius, they hadnot proceeded to the point of expulsion. The young man was still of theBrotherhood; nevertheless he did not venture to exercise any of theprivileges of a member. His cell was vacant. The five services of theday were held in the chapel without him. In short, the Brotherhood werein wait for an opportunity to visit him with their vengeance. In hopeof a favorable turn in the situation, he wore the habit of the Order,but it was his only outward sign of fraternity. Without employment,miserable, he found lodgment in the residence of the Patriarch, andwhat time he was not studying, he haunted the old churches of the city,Sancta Sophia in especial, and spent many hours a dreaming voyager onthe Bosphorus.
The glad look which shone in the eyes of the invalid when Sergius tookseat by her was very noticeable; and when she reached him her hand, thekiss he left upon it was of itself a declaration of tender feeling.
"I hope my little friend is better, to-day," he said, gravely.
"Yes, much better. The Princess says I may go out soon--the first realspring day."
"That is good news. I wish I could hurry the spring. I have everythingready to take you on the water--a perfect boat, and two master rowers.Yesterday they carried me to the Black Sea and back, stopping for alunch of bread and figs at the foot of the Giants' Mountain. They boastthey can repeat the trip often as there are days in the week."
"Did you stop at the White Castle?" she asked, with a smile.
"No. Our noble Princess was not with me; and in her absence, I fearedthe Governor might forget to be polite as formerly."
The gracious lady, listening, bent lower over the frame before her. Sheknew so much more of the Governor than Lael did! But Lael then inquired:
"Where have you been to-day?"
&n
bsp; "Well, my little friend, let me see if I can interest you.... Thismorning I awoke betimes, and set myself to study. Oh, those chapters ofJohn--the fourteenth, fifteenth and sixteenth. There is no need ofreligious knowledge beyond them. Of the many things they make clear,this is the clearest--the joys of eternal life lie in the saying of theLord, 'I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life; no man cometh untothe Father but by Me.' ... After my hours of study, I went to see anold church over in the low garden grounds beyond the aqueduct. Before Icould get through the doorway, a flock of goats had to pass out. I willtell His Serenity what I beheld. Better the wreck be cleaned from theface of the earth than desecrated. Holy ground once, holy groundforever."
"Where is the Church?" the Princess inquired.
"In the low grounds between the aqueduct, and the gates of St. Romainand Adrianople."
"It belongs to one of the Brotherhoods. They have farming right in thesoil."
"I am sorry to hear it."
As she turned to her work again, he went on with his account of himself.
"I had then two hours and more till noon, and was at loss what to do.Finally I decided to go to the Port of Blacherne--a long walk, but nottoo long, considering my motive.... Princess, have you heard of theItalian newly arrived?"
"What of him, pray?"
"He is the talk of the city, and if the half told of him be true, wemust needs wonder. He travels in his own ship. Merchants have thathabit, but he is not a merchant. Kings do so, but he is not a king. Hecame in saluting with a gun, in style becoming a great admiral; but ifhe is an admiral, his nationality is a secret. He also flies an unknownflag. They report him further as standing much on his deck in a suit ofarmor glistening like silver. And what is he? Mouth speaketh untomouth, with no one to answer. They go then to his ship, pronouncing itthe most perfect thing of the kind ever seen in the harbor. Those whohave rowed around it say the sailors are not white men, but dark-facedcreatures in turbans and black beards, un-Christian and ugly-looking.Fishermen and fruiterers have been permitted on deck--nobody else--andthey, returning alive, say the rowers, of whom they caught glimpses,are blacker than the sailors. They also overheard strange noisesbelow--voices not human."
The countenance of the Princess during this recital gradually changed;she seemed disposed to laugh at the exaggerations of the populace.
"So much for town-talk," Sergius continued. "To get sight of the ship,and of the mysterious magnate, I walked across the city to the Port ofBlacherne, and was well rewarded. I found the ship drawn in to thequay, and the work of unloading her in progress. Parties of porterswere attacking heaps of the cargo already on the landing. Where theywere taking the goods I could not learn. I saw five horses lifted outof the hold, and led ashore over a bridge dropped from the vessel'sside. Such horses I never before beheld. Two were grays, two bays, andone chestnut-colored. They looked at the sun with wide-open unwinkingeyes; they inhaled the air as it were something to drink; their coatsshone like silk; their manes were soft like the hair of children; theirtails flared out in the breeze like flags; and everybody exclaimed:'Arabs, Arabs!' There was a groom for each horse--tall men, lean,dust-hued, turbaned, and in black gowns. At sight of the animals, anold Persian who, from his appearance, might have been grandfather ofthe grooms, begged permission--I could not understand the tongue heused--put his arms around the necks of the animals, and kissed thembetween the eyes, his own full of tears the while. I suppose theyreminded him of his own country.... Then two officers from the palace,representatives doubtless of the Emperor, rode out of the gate inarmor, and immediately the stranger issued from his cabin, and cameashore. I confess I lost interest in the horses, although he went tothem and scanned them over, lifting their feet and tapping their hoofswith the handle of a dagger. By that time the two officers weredismounted; and approaching with great ceremony, they notified him theyhad been sent by His Majesty to receive and conduct him to assignedquarters. He replied to them in excellent Greek, acknowledging HisMajesty's graciousness, and the pleasure he would have in their escort.From the cabin, two of his men brought a complete equipment, and placedit on the chestnut steed. The furniture was all sheen of satin andgold. Another attendant brought his sword and shield; and after thesword was buckled around him, and the shield at his back, he took holdof the saddle with both hands, and swung himself into the seat with anease remarkably in contrast with the action of his Greek conductors,who, in mounting, were compelled to make use of their stirrups. Thecavalcade then passed the gate into the city."
"You saw him closely?" Lael asked.
"To get to his horse, he passed near me as I am to you, my littlefriend."
"What did he wear?"
"Oh, he was in armor. A cap of blue steel, with a silver spike on thecrown--neck and shoulders covered with a hood of mail--body in a shirtof mail, a bead of silver in each link--limbs to the knees in mail.From the knees down there were splints of steel inlaid with silver; hisshoes were of steel, and on the heels long golden spurs. The hood wasclasped under the chin, leaving the face exposed--a handsome face, eyesblack and bright, complexion olive, though slightly bloodless,expression pleasant."
"How old is he?"
"Twenty-six or seven. Altogether he reminded me of what I have heard ofthe warriors who used to go crusading."
"What following had he?"
This was from the Princess.
"I can only speak of what I saw--of the keepers of the horses, and ofthe other men, whom, in my unfamiliarity with military fashions, I willcall equerry, armorer, and squire or page. What accounting is to bemade of the ship's company, I leave, O Princess, to your betterknowledge."
"My inquiry was of his personal suite."
"Then I cannot give you a better answer; but if I may say so much, themost unusual thing observable in his followers was, they were allOrientals--not one of them had a Christian appearance."
"Well"--and the Princess laid her needle down for the first time--"Isee how easily a misunderstanding of the stranger may get abroad. Letme tell what I know of him.... Directly he arrived, he despatched aletter to His Majesty, giving an account of himself. He is a soldier byprofession, and a Christian; has spent much time in the Holy Land,where he acquired several Eastern languages; obtained permission fromthe Pontiff Nicholas to make war on the African pirates; manned hisgalley with captives; and, not wishing to return to his native land andengage in the baronial wars which prevail there at present, he offeredhis services to His Majesty. He is an Italian nobleman, entitled _CountCorti,_ and submitted to His Majesty a certificate, under the hand andseal of the Holy Father, showing that the Holy Father knighted him, andauthorized his crusade against the infidels. The preference for afollowing composed of Orientals is singular; but after all, it is onlya matter of taste. The day may come, dear Sergius, when the Christianworld will disapprove his method of getting title to servants; but itis not here now.... If further discussion of the Count takes place inyour presence, you are at liberty to tell what I tell you. At Blacherneyesterday I had the particulars, together with the other circumstance,that the Emperor gladly accepted the Italian's overture, and assignedhim quarters in the Palace of Julian, with leave to moor his galley inthe port there. Few noble foreigners have sought our Empire bringingbetter recommendations."
The fair lady then took up her needle, and was resuming work, whenLysander entered, and, after thumping the floor, announced: "Threeo'clock."
The Princess silently arose, and passed out of the room; at the sametime there was a commotion behind the curtain, and presently the otherapartment was vacated. Sergius lingered a moment.
"Tell me now of yourself," Lael said, giving him her hand.
He kissed the hand fondly, and replied: "The clouds still hang low anddark over me; but my faith is not shaken; they will blow away; and inthe meantime, dear little friend, the world is not all cheerless--youlove me."
"Yes, I love you," she said, with childish simplicity.
"The Brotherhood has elected a new Hegumen," he continued.
"A good man, I hope."
"The violence with which he denounced me was the chief argument in hisfavor. But God is good. The Emperor, the Patriarch, and the PrincessIrene remain steadfast. Against them the Hegumen will be slow inproceeding to my expulsion. I am not afraid. I will go on doing what Ithink right. Time and patience are good angels to the unjustly accused.But that any one should hold it a crime to have rescued you--O littlefriend, dear soul! See the live coal which does not cease burning!"
"And Nilo?"
"He wants nothing in the way of comforts."
"I will go see the poor man the first thing when I get out."
"His cell in the Cynegion is well furnished. The officer in charge hasorders direct from the Emperor to see that he suffers no harm. I sawhim day before yesterday. He does not know why he is a prisoner, butbehaves quietly. I took him a supply of tools, and he passes the timemaking things in use in his country, mostly implements of war andhunting. The walls of his cell are hung with bows, arrows and lances ofsuch curious form that there is always quite a throng to see them. Heactually divides honor with Tamerlane, the king of the lions."
"It should be a very noble lion, for that."
Sergius, seeing her humor, went on: "You say truly, little friend. Hehas in hand a net of strong thread and thousands of meshes already.'What is it for?' I asked. In his pantomimic way he gave me tounderstand: 'In my country we hunt lions with it.' 'How?' said I. Andhe showed me two balls of lead, one in each corner of the net. Takingthe balls in his hands: 'Now we are in front of the game--now itsprings at us--up they go this way.' He gave the balls a peculiar tosswhich sent them up and forward on separating lines. The woven threadsspread out in the air like a yellow mist, and I could see theresult--the brute caught in the meshes, and entangled. Then the bravefellow proceeded with his pantomime. He threw himself to one side outof the way of the leap--drew a sword, and stabbed and stabbed--and thetriumph in his face told me plainly enough. 'There--he is dead!' Justnow he is engaged on another work scarcely less interesting to him. Adealer in ivory sent him an elephant's tusk, and he is covering it withthe story of a campaign. You see the warriors setting out on themarch--in another picture they are in battle--a cloud of arrows inflight--shields on arm--bows bent--and a forest of spears. From thelarge end he is working down toward the point. The finish will be avictory, and a return with captives and plunder immeasurable.... He iswell cared for; yet he keeps asking me about his master the Prince ofIndia. Where is he? When will he come? When he turns to that subject Ido not need words from him. His soul gets into his eyes. I tell him thePrince is dead. He shakes his head: 'No, no!' and sweeping a circle inthe air, he brings his hands to his breast, as to say: 'No, he istravelling--he will come back for me.'"
Sergius had become so intent upon the description that he lost sight ofhis hearer; but now a sob recalled him. Bending lower over the hand, hecaressed it more assiduously than ever, afraid to look into her face.When at length the sobbing ceased, he arose and said, shamefacedly:
"O dear little friend, you forgive me, do you not?"
From his manner one would have thought he had committed an offence farout of the pale of condonement.
"Poor Sergius," she said. "It is for me to think of you, not you ofme." He tried to look cheerful.
"It was stupid in me. I will be more careful. Your pardon is a sweetgift to take away.... The Princess is going to Sancta Sophia, and shemay want me. To-morrow--until to-morrow--good-by."
This time he stooped, and kissed her on the forehead; next moment shewas alone.
